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Beautiful Music NOW - Jean-Baptiste Lully

Prom 42: Les Siècles and François-Xavier Roth, (Cédric Tiberghien on piano)at the Royal Albert Hall, on Wednesday 16 Aug. 2017.
Mark Allan
Prom 42: Les Siècles and François-Xavier Roth, (Cédric Tiberghien on piano)at the Royal Albert Hall, on Wednesday 16 Aug. 2017.

Jean-Baptiste Lully was the toast of the town in France during the Baroque era. The French King loved Lully, and today's Beautiful Music is a live performance of an excerpt from the composer's comédie-ballet LE BOURGEOIS GENTILHOMME.

Side note -- you may notice that the conductor is not waving a baton to lead the group. Rather he is banging a large staff on the ground to keep time. This happens to be what led to Lully's premature death! He accidentally stabbed his foot while leading with the conducting staff. He did not tend to his injury, and it became infected and, ultimately, developed gangrene.

Suzanne Bona is the host and executive producer of Sunday Baroque, a nationally syndicated weekly radio show of Baroque and early music which she originated on WSHU in 1987.